Snapchat remains a hugely popular social media platform, perfect for those who like to communicate through images and videos that won't stay up forever.

If you've tried to log into your Snapchat account and found that your account is locked, there could be a few explanations and ways to get it unlocked. Read on to find out more.

How to unlock your Snapchat account

There are a few different routes you might be able to take if your Snapchat account is locked, and this is down to three main causes for its locking.

Account has been temporarily blocked

If you see this message when trying to log in, you might want to double-check whether you've got any third-party plugins installed, as these can sometimes be the cause. Uninstall these, then log in and select "Unblock" to see if that lets you in.

Account has been permanently blocked

As the title will suggest, if you see this message there's not much that you can do. This is probably due to your account breaking the app's terms of service or user agreement, and it cannot be appealed.

Account has been compromised

If you get this message you need to get in touch with Snapchat's support team via this request form, which can help the team to unblock your account for you.

Did that work?

If you got back into your account, or worked out that you won't be able to do so, that's job done, but if you're still struggling to get into Snapchat, a word of warning. There are plenty of services out there offering to give back access to your account for a fee, but Snapchat warns heavily against using these.

They're often rip-offs or scams, and you'll be in danger of getting fleeced out of your hard-earned cash without even getting back into your account at all.